Jim Keller and his wife, Mary Ellen Hoy, recently moved from Pittsburgh to Ann Arbor, MI in order to be closer to their daughter, her husband, and three grandchildren. Until his retirement in April of 2016, Jim had served for 19 years as Chief Regulatory Counsel for PNC Bank. Prior to their move to Pittsburgh in 1997, Jim and Mary Ellen lived in the Washington DC area, where Jim worked for 13 years as an attorney for the Federal Reserve Board, followed by seven years in a private practice, with a focus on bank regulatory law. Jim is a graduate of Harvard College and The George Washington University Law School.
Jim’s interest in inclusive practices to support individuals with disabilities has been derived from his family, beginning with his parents, who had worked diligently for the rights of disabled individuals in the State of Connecticut. More recently, Jim has been influenced by the work of his wife and daughters. Jim’s wife, Mary Ellen, directed a preschool in Alexandria that mainstreamed children with disabilities, and then ran an institute that brought best practices for the mainstreaming of children with disabilities to early childhood centers throughout the DC metropolitan area. After moving to Pittsburgh, Mary Ellen continued to provide training to teachers in early childhood centers. Jim’s daughters have focused on careers in early childhood development and juvenile justice.